“Now, Lisa will be the one slipping inside today, Mr. Campbell. See to it,” Sofia instructed.
“Understood. The wagon is ready and waiting.”
They smuggled reports and supplies into the palace for Rachel by mixing them in with the daily deliveries from a subsidiary of the Black Cat Company that dealt in foodstuffs. This was just a ruse, though. The Black Cat Company actually sent the wagons directly, which was why sometimes all its contents went to Rachel instead of some going to the kitchens. They had a good number of agents inside the palace, especially at the gate, among the knights, and around Prince Elliott, so their wagons always went through with only a cursory inspection by their own people, bringing in a variety of different things every time. On days like today, Rachel’s subordinates—the maids—might be hitching a ride in the back.
“If Miss Lisa’s going herself, then has something big happened?” Campbell asked.
Sofia presented Campbell with another document and said, “They will be having a meeting about this. See?”
Campbell and Waters leaned in close together as they looked at the paper. When their zigzagging eyes reached the bottom, they each sighed.
“Well now...” Campbell muttered.
“She’s as nuts as ever,” Walters remarked. “She’s really going to do this in the dungeon?”
Sofia must have expected these reactions, because she simply pulled out a list and began calmly explaining.
“That being the case, Mr. Campbell, I need you to prepare these materials.”
“I can do that, but... What about the people involved? Can we do the setup for this by ourselves?”
“I will use the young mistress’s name and ask them to come in the name of the ducal house. They are more likely to agree that way.”
That Sofia could use Rachel’s name without asking was proof of how much Rachel trusted Sofia.
“And as for me, you want me to contact all these people?” Waters asked. He was looking down at his own list with a scowl. The people on it were all first-rate and wouldn’t come along for chump change.
“There should still be plenty of time, so find a way to persuade them,” Sofia insisted.
“You make it sound so easy, sis. These are all big shots in the industry, the kind of guys who can talk down to me, you know?”
“I have been thinking about that too. Arrange appointments, and if there is anyone you do not think you can persuade, contact me.”
When Waters expressed his hesitation, Sofia implied that she had some way of convincing them. However, he looked at her dubiously, figuring that this was just the idea of some servant in a noble house, detached from reality.
“What, sis, are you gonna have the old man pile up gold in front of them?” Waters asked.
Sofia shook her head. “No. If we’re successful, I’ll have the young mistress bow her head to them.”
“What?!” Waters exclaimed.
Campbell and Waters, who were both experienced in their own fields, froze. But of course they would. The daughter of the ducal house, next in rank only to the king and the royal family, would be lowering her head to people of common birth who, despite their fame, were little more than drifters. Given the difference in their status and a noble’s sense of pride, this kind of thing would never happen. But Rachel would do it. If she went that far, it was sure to make a positive impression on the person she was asking, but still...
“You’re serious?!” Waters said, sounding incredulous.
“Dead serious,” Sofia answered. “The young mistress is not the type to let her pride get in the way at times like these.”
“Maybe not, but... You actually got her permission for that?”
With an almost refreshing degree of ease, Sofia replied, “That is what Lisa is going to do after this, is it not?”
“Huh? I’m what?” Lisa squeaked.
Waters and Campbell’s jaws hit the floor. It seemed that so little planning had gone into this that not even the messenger knew their part.
Once Waters finally managed to recover somewhat, he said, “Hold up... What’re you gonna do if we make that promise and then the boss lady says she doesn’t want to do it?”
“Well, if the promise is already made, the young mistress will have to do it,” Sofia replied, sounding blasé. “If she objects, I’ll get her down on her hands and knees to ask permission, even if I have to step on her head to do it.”
Everyone but Sofia froze with shock again.
Lisa murmured, “I could never imitate that kind of relationship with the young mistress...”
“Sofia’s more like a foster sister than a childhood friend...” Campbell remarked.
“Normally you’d expect her to hold back a little, though...” Waters added.
Sofia’s words had reminded them of something important: Rachel wasn’t the only member of the Black Cats of the Dark Night who was crazy.
After Sofia saw the wagon off, she left the Black Cat Company. She stretched her arms wide, then started walking.
“Goodness, I certainly have worked hard today.”
She didn’t have any work left to do at this point. Come tomorrow, however, she’d awake to another hectic morning.
Coming to a crossroads, Sofia turned toward the mansion. She lifted her foot to take a step but then softly lowered it. Knowing how cheeky many of the other maids could be, it was possible that they’d left some portion of the documents untouched, saying they were Sofia’s share.
“I will not like it if I go back to the mansion and there is a pile of work waiting for me...”
Sofia did an about-face and went the other way. That was the way to a shop that served the fluffy chiffon cake that she’d been enamored with lately, along with fragrant tea.
“I have worked hard enough for today. I think I can allow myself a tea break, at the very least, as a perk of the job.”
Sofia was just as cheeky as her colleagues. She planned to invoice the cost as a business expense.
“Oh no, I screwed up!” a maid suddenly shouted as she was wiping a vase. The maid beside her, who was standing on tiptoe dusting a picture frame, nearly fell over.
“What’s wrong, Theodora?” the other maid asked.
“I forgot to give Miss Lisa my letter before she left!” Theodora cried.
“A letter? For the young mistress?” Rachel was relatively friendly toward the house servants, but it was still unusual for a common maid to write her a letter while she was in prison. “What’s the big deal? Were you requesting a vacation?”
“No, much more important!” The bespectacled Theodora clenched her fists as she launched into an impassioned explanation. “I want her to write a scene in her next work where Sykes turns the tables on Prince Elliott, and I wrote a fan letter with an outline for it! I was hoping it would let her know how strongly I feel about this...”
The other maid, who was holding a feather duster, shrugged as Theodora quietly cursed herself and writhed in agony.
“Why are you getting so into a series of novels that the young mistress only writes in her spare time? And with that kind of content... Your tastes are rotten, girl.”
“What are you saying? All women are all rotten like me!”
“Don’t lump us in with you!”
Their squabbling continued until the head maid walked by.